vertrkr

I canceled my order so there's a 2014 Designo August build slot available from Pleasanton MB if anyone is interested.

I just couldn't deal with the COMAND system. After setting up my parents new ML350 it just frustrated me more and more everytime I used it. I hate to give it all up but I just couldn't justify spending 90k on a car that would **** me off everytime I used it. Everyone has their quirks and having a nice dash interface is one of mine. Hopefully MB will redo the whole system and then I'll come back.

JAQ1

Wow, that was fast. Would love to know what you end up with. I am trying to find a V8 Durango to test but there aren't any around and the 14s have a new 8spd tranny anyway that will change everything. Maybe I'll hang onto my GL a little longer til they're out. Like you, I hate to give up all the stuff I like, but there's just enough that I don't like that it's hard to justify the $100k+ price tag.

vertrkr

It's been nagging me for months and just been getting worse but I feel pretty damn good now I'm free. Pretty sure it will come down to the 2014 models of Durango, X5, Grand Cherokee or the new Q7. I need cargo space so the Durango will be at the top of the list.

wamochi

just out of curiosity, what do you ordinarily use the COMAND for on a daily basis?

i used to be a gadget freak myself. at one point in time, we had 3 lexuses in the garage because their touchscreen and gadgets were the easiest to use.

i still am a gadget gal, in some ways, but now with smartphones i don't seem to care as much about the system in my car as long as it has bluetooth.

i agree COMAND is lousy considering the price of the car and that it's 2013, but at least it's way better than the one on the X164. so i was happy with that. on a daily basis i mostly use the audio functions and that's it.

Axxlrod

I wrote a very similar post yesterday about our new GL350.

The COMAND system is very cumbersome and the screen is not HD and is quite small.

The system in my wife's 2009 Escalade that the GL replaced was much better, easier to use as it was touchscreen and had a larger screen.

And compared to the iDrive system in my 2013 BMW... not even on the same planet.

For the price of these cars, I expect much more.

MB really needs to up the ante with the next version or I think the new BMW X7 will eat their lunch.

blittle

I agree with all being said.....Command is lousy! That being said......the greatest thing about the GL ( as I have it configured ) is its driveability capability, comfort, and mechanical quality......far beyond any SUV or station wagon ( yes, I'm that old!) that I have ever owned! That's in terms of hauling people, stuff and being able to ride decently and then turn into a mountain goat when I need it to. In short.... Command or no command, I would own of these machines. Any other SUV with an excellent or stunning electronics interface would have to be the equal in the above categories before I would even consider it!

JAQ1

Yes, that's what I keep coming back to. The only thing that really irks me is the COMAND, and well, this year after new tires the "shake" at 65. Seems they have finally fixed that.

I understand the new GL models have better bluetooth capabilities for streaming music which is what I primarily use COMAND for and with my '11 it's so cumbersome that I just give up most times. The UConnects we have even back from '09 are just so easy. Frustrating, but will prob stick with MB because of all the "good" you mention above.

JAQ1

blittle - what are those massage seats like? I also can't get that in any other model.

JAQ1

I stream music from all of our phones via Pandora or iTunes and use bt for phone calls. This is done at the touch of one button on UConnect. My bt drops out all the time in the MB and because I had to buy the MBPlus for bt in my model it takes up all of the glovebox space. I think that's now been upgraded.

Also, because it's not a touchscreen it seems really unsafe to be pushing all those buttons and arrows just to change from phone, to nav, to music. And to have to push the button 4 times to get from AM to FM to Sat to "whatever the heck the weather thing is called that I would never listen to if I had a choice," is a real pain.

I will admit the great thing about MB COMAND Nav is that you can input addresses while you are driving! I'm not sure how that got by the safety monitors. Can't do that in any American cars, so far as I know. Definitely not in the UCOnnect.

Steve Maislin

So, the FM radio works will for me with HD sound, even the news station on AM sounds better. The iPod that I keep in the car as a permanent fixture works perfectly. Pandora works perfectly using Bluetooth Audio, never a problem. Even my iPhone 5 using Navigon Navigation sends audio using Bluetooth. It provides competing navigation -- silly, but interesting. When I want FM, I say FM. When I want AM, I say AM. And, on and on. About the only thing I find to be a real problem is that it lacks POI information and looking up a POI is substandard. However, almost all of the time I just use maps.google.com and find what I want and send it to the car including custom routes.

I would like to see them have a system that works more like my iPhone. Maybe one day that will happen. For now, I really don't have any serious gripes. There are some features that I have yet to use because I have not seen the value, like recording a route. And, I do like that number pad.

I never look down when I use Comand and I programed those buttons to do what I need quickly. I had a Lexus before and the screen was full of fingerprints. I think the knob is much easier than reaching over to touch, touch, touch.

Well, that's all I have say for now. This could go on for a long time...

blittle

minimally effective.......I expected more......what it does is sequentially inflate then deflate the various positions of "lumbar" support. Not rapid enough or forceful enough for my taste. There are 4 settings from "slow and gentle" up to "rapid and vigorous" .... all are the same to me, slow and "ok" However....after 4 hours on the road, I DO turn it on and it DOES give some "back" relief.

cookstar

I tested the *cough* messaging seats on the CL and S class and found it to be the next to useless, I have the cooled seats on mine and find lame as well. Very gimmicky technologies to put it nicely. You pay $1200 in Canada for what are essentially 5 dollar very loud laptop fans, no cooling effect what so ever, just stops your back from sweating

ychoi1216

All Acura vehicles allow typing address while you are driving ever since they introduced Nav.

South Ocean1

Not sure whether it is the same massage function under the skin, but I use the message function on the driver's seat in my E63 all the time. It isn't a great message, but it as Blittle said, it does make a difference and I do enjoy it. My wife enjoys it as well. One of the things we are really looking forward to on the new GL is that both of us (driver and passenger) will have the message option . . . maybe it will allow me to save on a dinner date and just drive the new GL around with both seats on message

wamochi

That's what I've been hoping for for years too. At Apple's recent WWDC conference debuting IOS 7 , they talked about the car integration with iPhones and Mercedes was one of the brands on their list for 2014.

I would be all over that and am crossing my fingers it becomes reality!

Some nice screen shots of "iOS in the car" are at the bottom of this web page : http://www.apple.com/ios/ios7/features/

JAQ1

Crossing fingers it gets added to this model!

Dalema

Couple of notes for consideration.

COMMAND - agree crappy. Worst is POI

SA showed us how to use voice input when w e test drove it which worked pretty well. Would have been a significant negative in buying the car if not for this.

I don't believe I can input destinations when in motion manually (I can via voice) - I saw someone could - has there been a software update?

TEXTs

I can get texts to show up on command. Haven't played with it much but seemed buried and hard to access.

This worked on my iPhone 4S with latest iOS. For some reason we can't get it to work on my wife's iPhone 4??

JimBarnhart

I have a vehicle that has a touch screen, and of course COMAND in my GL350. Call me crazy, but I'll take the puck over the touch screen. I find myself manipulating with the puck quite a bit and find it less distracting than having to use the touch screens. And there's no fingerprints.

For navigation, I recommend like the other poster to 'send to your Mercedes' in advance when possible. My wife loves it when she's taking a trip with it and she gets in and finds I've sent the destination to the COMAND navigation for her already. Click the button and go.

I'm not going to say COMAND is great, but I find it functional. Maybe since I'm coming from a 2007 COMAND I can see obvious advances.

Axxlrod

Everything is relative to what you are used to.

The folks who have had many MB's in your garage, the learning curve is minor, and seems you are mostly satisfied.

For the others, like myself, who are new to MB, the shocker is that for a premium brand which COMANDS (pun intended) a premium price, the COMAND system is several generations behind other manufacturer's infotainment systems.

The main screen is a great example. It's only 7" wide, and not HD. I believe the screen in my BMW is 10" and HD. Most $20K entry-level cars nowadays have much larger screens than our $70K+ GL's.

I realize there are many excellent attributes of the GL. I'm not saying its a bad car. The opposite actually. It's a great vehicle for its target market. I am just disappointed in this one aspect. And its a big one as the COMAND system is used everytime you drive.

blittle

I agree with you..... The puck/controller thing is much more "positive" and functional than trying to touch the right spot on a screen while moving along at highway speed. Using the controller allows you to do a quick glance at the screen and move the controller "intuitively" ....... touching the screen as I have to do in my Toyota, requires more lengthy look at the screen and hopefully touching the right spot.

sam9187

+1

JAQ1

Well, I am hopeful then! The x164 I currently am in doesn't have the puck; it has the OK button and arrows on all 4 sides on the dash, so much trickier than a touchscreen to use.

wamochi

the new COMAND controller is 10x better than the old "OK" button w/ 4 arrows. we have the "mouse" controller in the Lexus and although i wish it was still touchscreen, the mouse is easier to use than COMAND's puck IMHO. the mouse also has tactile feedback which is nice.

either way, these "joystick" type systems really bother me and also make it difficult for right handed people in the passenger seat to input data. with touchscreen you didn't have that issue.

i hope that the iOS 7 integration happens and you can just tell siri to take you to a full address instead of having to use the stupid nav and separately tell the nav the city, state, address, house number. by the time i've said all those things and corrected all the errors, i may as well have just used my phone.

there was a tesla video that showed the driver telling the google map to give directions to a full address in a city and state and that was all it needed.

JimBarnhart

The puck makes all the difference in the world. Simple things like scrolling through radio stations are done by just twisting the puck. No need to even look at the screen. For advanced users(with a little practice and memory) you can switch between functions without even looking at the screen. From the navigation screen "push, up, up, twist clockwise 3 spots, push, twist clockwise once, push" gets you to Sirius weather. Sorry I'm an engineer and programmed to be analytic.

JAQ1

Love the Tesla big screen! That's my next car when I don't need an SUV.